Floor processing machine



Feb. 13, 1951 w, s, L 2,541,812

FLOOR PROCESSING MACHINE Filed 001;. so, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

ATTORNEYS W. S. FINNELL FLOOR PROCESSING MACHINE Feb; 13, 1951 IN V EN TOR.

ATTORNEYS Filed Oct. 50, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Feb. 13,1951 v w. s. F NN L 2,541,812

' FLOOR PROCESSING MACHINE F I G. 4 JNVENTOR.

WAUrmFm/ELL Feb. 13, 1951 w. s. FINNELL 2,541,812

' FLOOR PROCESSING MACHINE Filed Oct. 30, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN V EN TOR.

WAUIR 6. [VIVA Ell Patented Feb. 13, 1951 2 a esl- 9- ab naturei clud hs 911 9.1 4 r19 driv n me 1 191 1.. ed ver i all in the-rear Q the mac and pe-rat rely c nnected tel e r tary b us p d e ees o d iye t l t r t redu e sp edwit ou t e se of sense A anther obiectrie 9 r vid a d v e of h above type including a double reduction y -belt ire c rern. t e s ririliem9tqr. a d t e r ta br sh medle- Ano h r ob e t is ter or-w areta y re essn devi e .inc ud n me .stq eed hqt w .te or other flu s hee eh the m ddl hi th rotary brush rather than to the outer cir c urnference thereof.

A further object is to provide improved means for attaching a rotary brush to its driving spindle.

A still further object is to provide ratchet latching means between the operating handle and the body of the scrubber, whereby ,the'handle may readily be set at any desired operating angle for operating the device, changing, brushes, ,etc.

Further objects and advantages of the'invention will become evident during the course of the l r rt qn I I wa o, be lconp mrie the zewit A spindle L4 is supi gorte'dfon" roller bearings 15 and '5 eeve; ml The S ind e '4" h formed iritegrallytherewith e secured thereto Mia-n e "and t am ates in a b t r ly ectangular c ossmembe'r. comprising laterally" ex tending drivingdogs til/ A centrallpjafssag Ma ,e t ds throu h hespi d e 4 'A b', i5u11ey l9, herein illustrated "as" adapted tdticcomirhb? date twin ill-belts 2.0 and 'zl'fis secured lto th'e flange l1.

A' downwardly dire t d P i ec ed i the casing 'lG' rearwardly of the'spindl'e'lll and is r e ri id -b m ans or a br cke 22. e pm" 232 carries bearings 24 an .215, orere'r'amy or ball type; on whichisflinounted a double diameter lv beltsheave' -2s; Thesifia q ien 21 0 the sheave 26 "i aligned wit the sp ndlep nle I19" andis' connected therewithby .rnfeans of the y-belez a dzi An electrical jfnotorjfl, having a vertical shalt following description in connection v withthe acv.

companying drawings in Which Figure 1 is a longitudinal part sectional view of a preferred form of scrubber, with" the handle rer'noved';

Figure 21s a plan view of the same;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the complete machine illustrating the provision of means to feed water or other fluids to the center of the brush;

Figure 4 is a bottom illustration of a typical rotary brush. illustrating, the central feed feature; V v s Figure 5 isa detail plan view of a typical brush Figure 6 is a similarview partly cut to ,illu'straterthe improved-means .of attaching the brush to "it's spindle and "preventing accidental.

release of the brush therefrom; and

Figure 7 is a detail cross sectional view of the brush hub in the plane 1 l, Figure 6.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the numeral i9 denotes a casing open at the bottom and having a substantially circular forward portion H and a rectangular rear portion l2. A downwardly d 6n the ippe tear pagers.

.A it n]? A han le shank thesoclie l bfl pper e ated pp nine .4 F1 i eatec tolasimit the dri in so 1y, while 'the interior st of the'h arises re egat easse s .5! anti ted t mi 'ft e thee. to be i ninety degrees Figure 6. In this position the upper walls of the recesses overlie the dogs and prevent their axial withdrawal after the manner of a bayonet joint.

Referring to Figure 6, the numeral 55 designates a small plunger slidably mounted in a hole 55 in the hub 48 and provided with a necked portion 5i carrying a compression spring 58. The neck portion 51 extends outward through a small lug 59 struck out from the flange 4'i'. A button 60 on the end of the neck portion 51 restrains the plunger 55 from excessive inward movement under pressure of the spring 58.

The end 6| of the plunger 55 extends diagonally into the recess 53. When it is desired to mount the brush 44 on the spindle l4, the driving dogs l8 are inserted through the elongated opening is so as to register laterally with the recesses 53 and 54. The driving dogs 18 are then rotated into the recesses either by turning the spindle counter-clockwise (Figure 6) or by rotating the hub 48 in the opposite direction. During this relative rotation, one of the dogs 18 engages the end 5| of the plunger 55 and a forces the latter outward against the pressure of the spring 58. When the dog [8 has completely overridden the plunger 55 and has reached the position illustrated in dot-dash lines of Figure 6, the plunger 55 snaps in behind it.

It is evident that thereafter, any tendency of the bar l8 to revolve clockwise, that is, in reverse direction in the hub 48, causes the dog to engage the side of the plunger-latch 56 which restrains further movement and prevents accidental disengagement through reverse motion;

When it is desired to remove the brush from the spindle, the plunger 55 is pulled outward manually by means of the button 60, thus releasing the dog I8 and allowing the brush to be revolved until registry of the dogs with the opening 49 permits removal of the brush from the end of the spindle. The hub 48 has a lower central opening 62 for a purpose hereinafter set forth.

Referring again to Figure 1, an electrically operated wax heater 63 may be mounted by means of a bracket 64 on the top of the casing In ahead of the motor 28. The heater 63 has a lower tubular connection 55 extending downwardly into the central passage 14a in the spindle !4. Since the heater 63 may be of any suitable type of which the particular internal construction comprises per se no part of the present invention, description of the particulars of its internal parts need not be included herein.

It is evident that when fluid wax from the heater 63-is admitted by the connection 65 to passage l4a. the wax flows down through the hol ow spindle and the opening 62 in the hub 48 into the space within the central zone of the brush 44.

Figure 3 illustrates the general construction of the device as described except that instead of the wax heater 63 being provided on the top of the casing 15, a tank 66, suitable for containing water or other processing fluid, is secured on the handle shank 36a. A flexible tube 5'! connects the tank 55 with an angular fitting 68 secure y on the casing if! and adapted to deliver fluid into the hollow spindle as previously described.

The tank 33 is provided with a flared filler top 39. A rod Hi. ada ted to operate a valve 1! of any suitable type for controlling the flow of fluid from the tank H through the tube 61,

4 extends upward to a point near a pair of operating hand grips 12. The grips 12 extend laterally from a switch box mounted on the outer end of the handle shank 36a. Switch control levers extend from the switch box 13 in convenient position adjacent the hand grips 12.

In processing a floor by means of the machine, the operator grasps the grip 12 and turns the motor on and off as desired by means of the switch layers 14. In ordinary operation it is normally convenient to push the machine about with the handle at comparatively low angle and freely movable up and down. To provide for this operation, the arcuate latch 40 may be pushed forward and upward by the operators foot to release the notches 42 from the latching edge 43 as previously described. The handle may then be swung downward until the un-notched portion 400, of the latch rides freely on the edge 43.

Should it be desired to raise the brush 44 from the floor as, for instance, in travelling over a door sill or the like, the handle may be pushed upward until the rearmost notch 42 engages the latching edge 43 to support the handle shank 36a in the position shown in Figure 3. The operator then pushes downward on the hand grips it. The wheels thereupon act as a fulcrum and as the weight of the processing machine is distributed by location of the motor 28 near the wheels 35, the machine is readily swung upward to allow the brush 44 to clear the floor or obstruction.

When it is desired to store the machine in a minimum of space, the handle shank 36a may be swung to vertical position, the forward notch 42 of the latching member 45 engaging and holding on the latching edge 43 as illustrated in Figure 1.

The weight distribution noted above also is advantageous when it is desired to install the brush 5-4 or to change from one type of brush to another, since the forward part of the machine is readily swung up from the floor in the manner described above.

In removal of the brush 44, the latch plunger 55 (Figure 6) is drawn outward by means of the 7 button 50 to release the dogs l8, allowing the brush to be revolved in approximately ninety degrees until the cross opening registers with the dogs 58, whereupon the brush may be withdrawn axially.

It will be noted in Figure 1 that the upper and lower surfaces i301. and i312 of the dogs are slightly inclined toward each other so as to provide a tapering clearance between themand the upper and lower walls of the recesses 54. Also, the ends and corners of the dogs will be seen to be rounded and that they clear the outer walls of the recesses. This construction allows the brush 44 to have a limited amount of free-, dom to rock or float on the end of the spindle 14. By this means, during operation of the device, the attaching means of the brush to the spindle operates after the manner of a universal joint, permitting the brush 4% to ride flat on the floor while the body of the device may be tipped at varying small angles to vary the'downward processing pressure or when the wear oi the brush has made downward inclination of the body necessary to maintain proper contact.

It will be seen that the shape of the driving dogs 58 as described is such as to facilitate their entry into the hub 48 without undue precision or care in moving the parts together. As an example, if desired in installing a brush, the latter may be placed flat on the floor, the machine tipped upward and lowered until the lower end of the spindle rests approximately in the center. of the hub 48. If thereupon the spindle I4 is :rotated by momentary operation of the motor 28, the tapered dogs l8 drop readily into the cross opening 49 and revolve into lock position in the recesses 53. In other words, when the brush is applied in the manner described, the entry and locking of the attaching means is automatically accomplished as the motor revolves the brush in driving direction.

The'brush 44 may be of any desired type to accomplish various processing operations such as scrubbing, surfacing, waxing, etc. In accomplishing operations in which it is desired to apply a fluid tothe floor, the fluid is admitted through the middle of the brush by the means previously described.

It is obvious that this means of applying a fluid, such for example as hot wax, is much superior to methods in which the fluids are applied to or outside the periphery of the brush, since the fluid works evenly out under all brushing surfaces and is not pushed or thrown about on walls, baseboards or the like. of the fluid feed, no undue surplus fluid is released to accumulate on the floor outside the brush circumference and to require subsequent removal. The central feed thus provides maximum efiiciency and economy in utilization of fluid.

The V-belt structure described provides a quiet, gearless drive in minimum space, the double-reduction feature permitting a large over-all speed reduction with comparatively small closely spaced sheaves and with moderate individual reductions, thus ensuring ample arcs of belt contact on all sheaves.

; While the invention has been described in preferred form it is not limited to the exact embodiments illustrated, as various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a device of the character described, in combination, a casing, a vertical spindle rotatably mounted in the forward portion of said casing and having a central passage, 2. motor secured onthe rear portion of said casing and having a ;vertical shaft extending downward in said casv ing, speed-reducing means including V-belts op- 1; eratively connectingsaid shaft and said spindle "whereby said motor may drive said spindle at With proper regulation reduced speed, a hub underlying the lower end of said spindle, a driving member on the lower portion of said spindle and engaging said hub in rotary driving relation, said hub being laterally rockable on said member, means to retain said hub on said member, said hub having an unrestricted central aperture in axial registry with said passage, an annular brush plate secured to the periphery of said hub, means forming a substantially annular brush secured to said plate and adapted to engage a floor, a wax heater on said casing, and means to conduct melted wax from said heater to the top of said passage, whereby said wax may pass downward in unobstructed flow through said passage and said central aperture in said rockable hub to said floor at the center of said annular brush.

2. In a device of the character described, in combination, a support, a rotary spindle vertically journalled in said support, a driving member on the lower end of said spindle, a hub engaging said driving member in rotary driven relation, said hub being laterally rockable on said member, means to retain said hub on said member, a substantially annular processing member secured to said hub and adapted to engage a floor, means forming an unobstructed central passage for processing fluid through said spindle and said rockable hub, means to rotate said spindle, and means to direct a processing fluid through said unobstructed passage to said floor at the center of said processing member.

WALTER S. FINNELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 611,096 Barrow Sept. 20, 1898 695,479 Nelson Mar. 18, 1902 724,057 Secord Mar. 31, 1903 1,164,740 Meyers Dec. 21, 1915' 1,434,109 Finnell Oct. 31, 1922 1,493,309 Wilson May 6, 1924 1,736,446 Keefer Nov. 19, 1929 1,794,464 Johnson Mar. 3, 1931 1,829,132 Finnell Oct. 27, 1931 1,830,362 Johnson Nov. 3, 1931 1,877,951 Norris Sept. 20, 1932 1,898,357 Finnell Feb. 21, 1933 1,927,226 Woods Sept. 19, 1933 2,252,269 McQuown Aug. 12, 1941 

